There is no rule specifically addressing this issue. Knowledge of each and every document provided by Jones Supply to Rolfes, including, but not limited to, each and every document referring to hauling, delivery, safety, truck specifications, insurance, maintenance, driver evaluations, driver conduct, driver dress, advertising, the Jones Supply logo, compensation, bonuses, and discounts. Knowledge of all documents constituting, commemorating, or relating to any incidences of overweight citations or warnings issued for any tractor and/or trailer owned, leased or otherwise in the service of Defendant Rolfes. and Towson; Carroll County including Westminster; Frederick County including Frederick; Harford County including Abingdon, Bel Air, Belcamp, and Forest Hill; Montgomery County including Germantown and Rockville; Howard County including Ellicott City and Columbia, Washington, D.C. and Washington County including Hagerstown. Rule 57.03(b)(4) provides that a party may name a corporation, agency or other organization as the deponent. This Court issued an alternative writ of mandamus. Knowledge of all records of Defendant Dughly for the 7 days prior to the incident and for the day of the incident. 0000000016 00000 n No. The alternative writ of mandamus is made peremptory. Insurance Company, because: (1) Plaintiff's amended corporate representative deposition notice improperly expanded the areas of testimony and added a duces tecum; (2) the corporate representative topics are vague and not limited in time; and (3) Plaintiff has still failed to withdraw th e Opdyke deposition notice." Dkt. 0000001873 00000 n P. 199.2(b)(1) (setting the requirements for deposing an organization). 7. Knowledge of all mileage logs and travel reimbursement records for Defendant Dughly for the month of the incident. testify 'vicariously' at trial, as distinguished from at the Rule 30(b) (6) deposition, if the corporation makes the witness available at trial, he should not be able to refuse to testify to matters as to which he testified at the deposition on grounds that he had only corporate knowledge of the issues, not personal knowledge."8 With Casetext, Inc. and Casetext are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice. The rule provides that the corporate representative shall testify as to matters known or reasonably available to the organization. Rule 53.07(b)(4)'s plain language does not contain any provision permitting the representative to avoid testimony on the identified topics by stating that he or she has no personal knowledge of the subject matter. Knowledge of any maps, directions, or delivery instructions that were provided by Defendant Jones Supply to Defendant Rolfes drivers prior to the date of the subject collision. Your membership has expired - last chance for uninterrupted access to free CLE and other benefits. Or, if the person designated as the representative had some involvement in the underlying events, the plaintiffs attorney may ask questions about areas in which the person had no involvement, again, for the purpose of eliciting admissions of no knowledge. The notice identified five topics to be covered during the deposition. The trial date is looming. A writ of prohibition [or] mandamus is the proper remedy for curing discovery rulings that exceed a court's jurisdiction or constitute an abuse of the court's discretion. State ex rel. R. Civ. Rule 30(b)(1) directs that the party noticing the deposition state the time and location for the examination, . Knowledge of the organizational charts and lists identifying the divisions and management structure for your company, its subsidiaries, parents, or affiliates of the year of the collision and four years prior. Federal Rule of Evidence 615 does state that witnesses must be excluded at a party's request, but according to Rule 30(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, "[t]he examination and cross . : 24-C-15-003129Jones Supply COMPANY, LP, et al. See Penn Mutual Life Ins. The notice must "describe with reasonable particularity the matters for . As a result, it is not uncommon for the corporate representative to be an individual with no or limited knowledge and/or involvement in the events giving rise to the lawsuit. Co., v. Imperial Premium Finance, LLC, No. 0000003621 00000 n After all, if the plaintiff merely intends to ask a series of questions about which the individual has no knowledge, then the evidence is irrelevant in all probability or, at a minimum, unfairly prejudicial to the defendant corporation. 16 A. R. S. R. Civ. 246) Plaintiffs requested a telephone conference with the Court to discuss whether Defendant Washington University should be allowed to not designate a representative to discuss three topics b. rule 1.310(b)(6) and the binding effect of a corporate representative's testimony To place matters in a proper context we begin our review by summarizing how Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.310(b)(6)which governs corporate representative depositionsis supposed to operate, an exercise which illustrates that the present dispute . The importance of each function varies depending on the nature of the case and the amount in dispute. 0000000950 00000 n Knowledge of the entire qualification file of Defendant Rolfes and Dughly (regardless of subject, form, purpose, originator, receiver, title or description) maintained pursuant to 49 CFR 391.51 and preserved pursuant to 49 CFR 379. Rule 57.05 - Persons Before Whom Depositions May Be Taken. Knowledge of any and all long-form DOT physicals for Defendant Dughly for the time he was a driver for Defendant Rolfes. Knowledge of any statements, written, audiotaped, or otherwise recorded or memorialized of any of the parties or witnesses to the incident. 11-80818-MC, 2011 WL 13228574, *4 (S.D. Thus, the use of the deposition must be permitted by both Rule 32 and the Rules of Evidence. These facts, even if discovered solely through the company's . 0000004581 00000 n LAW RELATING TO DEPOSITIONS OF CORPORATE DESIGNEES Rule 57(b)(4) provides that a party serving a deposition notice on a corporation must "describe with reasonable particularity the matters on which examination is requested." Mo. The purpose of deposing a corporate representative is not to uncover the representative's personal knowledge or recollection of the events at issue. Rule 104 of the Federal Rules of Evidence provides that preliminary questions about the admissibility of evidence are to be determined by the court and should be done outside of the presence of the jury when required by the interests of justice. Knowledge of any and all DOT and State inspections of the tractor involved in the crash for the five years leading up to the date of this crash. Knowledge of all documents received, obtained or filed by Defendant Rolfes when qualifying Defendant Dughly as a truck driver in accordance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Rule 30(b)(6) is not designed to be a memory contest, and a deponent does not have to successfully answer every question posed by the opposing party to complete a deposition. Knowledge of each out of service report or violation concerning the tractor and trailer involved in this incident for the 5 years prior to this incident to the present, to include copies of any supplements, responses, or amendments to the same. Relator deposed Defendant's corporate representative on all five deposition topics. The Court denied the plaintiffs motion. Learn more about FindLaws newsletters, including our terms of use and privacy policy. A party may, by oral questions, depose any person, including a party, without leave of court except as provided in Rule 30 (a) (2). Many states also have similar rules providing a mechanism for deposing a corporation or other company 1. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6), an organization must designate one or more officers, directors, or . The panel will discuss how to respond to a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice and select and prepare witnesses for the deposition. With respect to the first and third deposition topics, the corporate representative testified that she had no personal knowledge of how the decedent fell or of the design and placement of the electrical box. Knowledge of all documents concerning any bills, attorney's fees, court costs, expenses, expert fees, formal or informal, that reduce the amount of liability insurance available to cover the Plaintiff. Knowledge of all payroll, compensation, incentive pay for Defendant Dughly for work performed covering the 5 years preceding the collision and including the date of the collision. Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the sequestration rule does not apply to pretrial depositions absent a special order, Fed. banc 1994). 3. Introductory questions serve two purposes. Discovery has closed. P. 57.03(b)(4). Plainly, you could not physically depose a corporation as it could not speak for itself. Knowledge of any job, driver, independent contractor, and/or employment application filled out or signed by Defendant Dughly. Knowledge of all road or test cards, medical cards, DOT physical examination log forms, motor carrier certification of driver qualification cards and any other motor carrier transportation-related cards in the possession of the Defendant Rolfes regardless of card issuance date or origin. A designated representative who gives testimony under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 206(a) may not be contradicted by any other corporate representative at trial. Based on these rules, the defendant can argue that before the plaintiff is allowed to call to the stand as an adverse witness a person designated as a company representative for appearance purposes only, the court should inquire into the plaintiffs areas of examination. The answer: Depose the corporate representative under Fla. R. Civ. The first deposition topic was Defendant's knowledge of decedent, Irwin Reif's fall on February 2, 2001. The third deposition topic was [t]he reason and/or basis for the presence of the electrical plug and/or electrical plug box on the aisle floor of the premises at the time of plaintiff's fall on February 2, 2001.. hYrF}WLa fp,+rD. 0000000776 00000 n Now what? Title: (Ex: Defendant's or Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Deposition of Opposing Party's Corporate Representative; Background Facts and Requests For Deposition, including statement of the case, information regarding noticed depositions, statement regarding non-compliance with notice; Moving Party's Requirements (of deponent's testimony) at trial; :Plaintiffs, :v. : Case No. Knowledge of all arrests and or/convictions of the Defendant Dughly. Knowledge of all driver's licenses and truck driver certifications which Defendant Dughly possesses (currently) and did possess on the date of the incident. Knowledge of the policies or procedures provided by Jones Supply to Rolfes, regarding safety, motor vehicle safety, travel policy, sleep and rest requirements, vehicle inspection, driver standards and hiring requirements that were in effect at the time of the incident, including, but not limited to driver safety manuals, driver safety operating procedures, driver safety training manuals/procedures/guidelines. A party may in the notice and in a subpoena, if required, name as the deponent a public or private corporation or a partnership or association or governmental agency and describe with reasonable particularity the matters on which examination is requested. If such an agreement is not possible, the Southern District of Florida recently addressed the question of what constitutes adequate preparation of a corporate witness. Knowledge of all disciplinary action contemplated or taken against Defendant Dughly involving the operation of the motor vehicle he was operating at the time of the collision. STATE ex rel. Knowledge of any compensation from Jones Supply to Defendant Dughly (or any other Rolfes driver), including any bonuses and/or discounts on Jones Supply products. MICHAEL THOMAS MARTINEZ, II, et al. You are advised that you must designate one or more officers, directors, managing agents, or other persons who will testify on your behalf regarding the matters listed in "Schedule A" which are known or reasonably available to Jones Supply Company, LP. Knowledge of the entire file for Defendant Rolfes. See CCP 2025.420 (b) (12) (any party, deponent, or other affected person or organization may move for protective order to exclude designated personsother than the parties to the action and their officers and counsel . Knowledge of all safety ratings issued to Defendant Rolfes by any federal government agency for the five years preceding the incident. (6) A party may in his notice name as the deponent a public or private corporation or a partnership or association or governmental agency and designate The case settled and I got a lot more money than I expected. | 0 Rule 57.06 - Presiding Officer for Deposition. C. Motion to Compel Designation of Rule 30(b)(6) Designee (ECF No. Knowledge of all documents reflecting any background check performed on Defendant Dughly with regard to his criminal history. The purpose of a writ of mandamus is to execute a clear, unequivocal and specific right, not to adjudicate. R. CIV. Contact us. The Corporate Representative Deposition in Illinois Under Supreme Court Rule 206 (a)(1) AL. Corinne REIF, Relator, v. The Honorable Michael T. JAMISON, Respondent. Knowledge of all accident and/or incident reports and investigations prepared by Defendant Rolfes (prepared prior to any litigation) as a result of the crash other than the police report. a prior corporate representative deposition transcript and offer that in lieu of an actual deposition. subsequent motions for protection and to quash the deposition notice. P., Rule 30(b)(4). Specifically, produce the supporting documents listed below which the Defendant Rolfes is required to maintain under 49 CFR 395.8(k) and to preserve under 49 CFR 379 (including Appendix A, Note A). Baylor University | A Nationally Ranked Christian University . Although the corporate representative has the ability to cover a myriad of corporate matters about which she has been educated for during the deposition, some courts have held that Evidence Rule 602 limits the scope of the witness's trial testimony to matters that are within her personal knowledge. Initially, trial judges have great discretion in controlling litigation. The issue in this writ proceeding is whether a corporate representative designated for deposition pursuant to Rule 57.03(b)(4) can limit his or her deposition testimony to personal knowledge instead of testifying about facts that are known or reasonably available to the organization. At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. Knowledge of all evaluations or criticism of the job performance of any of Defendant Rolfes's drivers by Jones Supply, including but not limited to annual evaluations, interim evaluations, or specific incidents that gave rise to an evaluation or criticism. 0000001433 00000 n Corporate Representatives Protected Work Product Most practitioners are familiar with the pur-pose and scope of corporate-representative depositions, commonly known as "30(b) (6) depositions" in federal court. For the purposes of this section, "officer" means the president, chief executive officer, chief operating officer, or chief financial officer of a publicly traded company or of a subsidiary of such company that employs 250 or more people. 6 Theoretically . Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 (c) (1) (E) places the burden on the party seeking to exclude people from the deposition to move for a protective order "designating the persons who may be present while the discovery is conducted." 8.01-420.4:1. Knowledge of any and all bills of lading, shipper documents and receipts for the load being hauled by Defendant Rolfes and Dughly at the time of the subject collision. Knowledge of the job description of the position or job that Defendant Rolfes was performing as a commercial carrier for Defendant Jones Supply at the time of the incident if such exists. Knowledge of all records and reports of audits performed by the Bureau of Motor Carrier Safety or by any other state or federal agencies for Defendant Rolfes and/or Dughly. %%EOF Terry v. Holtkamp, 330 Mo. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship. Because a deposition is sworn testimony, it can be used to prove perjury if a witness tries to change his or her testimony at trial. State ex rel. The procedure of Rule 4:9 shall apply to the request. R. Civ. %PDF-1.4 % 0000001589 00000 n The circuit court abused its discretion by overruling Relator's motion to compel production of a substitute corporate representative prepared to testify regarding Defendant's organizational knowledge of the identified deposition topics.1 The alternative writ of mandamus is made peremptory. Knowledge of all phone call logs, or correspondence reflecting complaints or criticisms of any kind received by Defendant Jones Supply from any source, including Jones Supply personnel, concerning the performance of Defendant Rolfes drivers while hauling for Defendant Jones Supply. Rule 57.03 - Depositions Upon Oral Examination (a) When Depositions May Be Taken (1) After commencement of the action, any party may take the testimony of any person, including a party, by deposition upon oral examination without leave of court, except as specified in paragraph (2) of this subdivision. Knowledge of any employee handbook for Defendant Rolfes that was in effect at the time of the incident. endstream endobj 101 0 obj<>/Size 85/Type/XRef>>stream 0000005124 00000 n In other words, the testimony of the corporate representative designated pursuant to Rule 57.03(b)(4) is not the deposition of that individual for his or her personal recollections or knowledge but is instead the deposition of the corporate defendant. Annin v. Bi-State Development Agency, 657 S.W.2d 382, 386 (Mo.App.1983). Particularly if the designated representative had little or no involvement in the events underlying the litigation, the corporations attorney should be prepared to fight any attempt to call the designated representative as an adverse witness, at least in his or her capacity as a corporate representative, by insisting that the designated person not be allowed to be called unless specifically identified on a witness list and, if the person is so identified, relying on arguments of relevance and unfair prejudice. Knowledge of any and all documents relating to any investigation performed by Defendant Jones Supply concerning Defendant Rolfes's safety rating, safety fitness, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's safety measurement system, behavioral analyst and safety improvement categories (BASICs), including unsafe driving, hours of service compliance, driver fitness, controlled substances/alcohol, vehicle accidents, list of crashes, roadside inspections and commercial vehicle violations prior to the date of the subject collision. P. 30(b)(6). However, there are a number of different rules which do come into play on this issue. The principle underlying this argument is that only the corporation has the authority to designate particular representatives to speak on its behalf and bind it with respect to particular subject areas. Knowledge of the accident register maintained as required in. 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